Ask a Book Question: The 55th in a Series (Future Blue Chips)

Related Books:

Ron writes in with this question:

The recent issue of Firsts magazine has an article on today’s “blue chip” authors for book collectors: Hemingway, Steinbeck, Faulkner, Fitzgerald. It made me wonder who writing today will be a blue chip author in the future. In the next 10 or 15 years, who will have books selling at the astronomical prices many great first editions books command?

I find old books fascinating, but I’m no book collector. It requires a fortitude and attention to detail that I simply don’t possess. However, I was able to pass this question along to an expert, book shop owner Nigel who runs the fascinating book collecting blog, Bookride. Here’s what Nigel had to say:

Predicting which authors will be collected in the future is a good game but slightly risky.

In the past people have tried to suggest authors worthy of financial investment and often got it sadly wrong. E.g. a few years ago Louis de Bernieres was being tipped as a highly collectable author. His prices did indeed shoot up in value so that at one point fine firsts of Captain Corelli were worth as much as $2000, but it is now readily buyable at less than half that. It could be because there has been a move against authors associated with Magic Realism, but also because the book is readily available and copies just keep turning up. The lesson is that however good a writer is – if there are too many copies of his or her works (and not enough collectors) the book will not prove a good bet. Supply and demand. That being said let me try and suggest a few writers.

Of the serious American novelists you should be OK with Don DeLillo, Brett Easton Ellis (especially the UK hardback first of American Psycho), Michael Chabon, Jeffrey Eugenides, William Gibson, Toni Morrison, limited editions of Vollmann, signed stuff by Hunter Thompson. Of the mass market authors, I cannot see Stephen King falling into desuetude but you need to stick to the early stuff, thriller writers like Michael Connelly, Pelecanos, Lee Child, Laurie King, Ian Rankin are happening and may continue to resonate. The big money is now in photobooks, children’s literature (Rowling, Pullman, Dahl) and artist’s books (Koons, Hirst, Warhol, Emin, Prince). Photographer Robert Frank’sThe Americans has more than trebled in value this century now selling for $10000+ in great condition, same goes for some of the young Japanese photographers. Condition is, as always, paramount.

The Irish poets like Heaney, Muldoon, Mahon and Michael Longley are a goodish bet. I like Harold Pinter and think he will rise in value – other Nobel Prize Winners might do well like Gao Xingjian and Jose Saramago. South American writers are a little played out with the brilliant exception of Roberto Bolano (who, perversely, said that most writers who won Nobel prizes were “jerks”). Another great collectible iconoclast is the French enfant terrible Michel Houellebecq. US poet Philip Levine will hopefully be seriously collected, possibly Patti Smith and amongst the Brit poets I would back James Fenton.

A litany of Brit writers like Ian Mcewan, Hanif Kureishi, Julian Barnes and Irvine Welsh are unlikely to flatline and in the “world music” category dig Haruki Murakami, Aime Cesaire, Khaled Hosseini, and Naguib Mahfouz. Of older writers I think Flann O’Brien might well increase in value – his work is said to give clues to the real meaning of [the TV show] ‘Lost’…

Thanks Nigel! If any book collecting types have thoughts to share, please do so in the comments.

"Troubled in Tacoma" writes in with this plea:I find myself becoming increasingly upset about the fact that I can't figure out where someone is publishing their new short stories. For example, just today I came across George Saunders' new story, "Puppy" in the New Yorker. I was happy that I was able to come across it, but I was also upset by the fact that I came across it by sheer luck. I would love to know where and when writers are publishing. The best I do now is check out the latest issues of the literary journals and magazines that publish short stories. I also try to find writers' websites to see if they post when they are publishing. I have also emailed writers a few times and asked them directly (I emailed Tom Kealey at one point to ask when his short story "Coyote Thieves" was coming out. He responded to me quickly and graciously.) I am all out of other ideas. I was hoping you might have some more advice. Maybe you know some websites that track when and where writers publish? I know you had a similar question about five months ago concerning book tours. I really wish there was something called IWDB (Internet Writers Database). I would join immediately. I would buy a lifetime subscription.I would, too. Unfortunately, as with many other aspects of the literary world, the ecosystem of literary magazines is hopelessly decentralized. Making matters worse, literary magazines tend to have very short lifespans. Beyond the bigger name magazines, it's hard to even know what's out there. To the best of my knowledge, there are various library indexes that track stories and reference sites, like The Locus Index to Science Fiction, devoted to genre stories, but as far as I know, none of these would afford a reader a forward-looking view of what is coming out from various writers. (If there are librarians or readers out there who are better informed on the topic, please share your advice in the comments.)Beyond that, your makeshift efforts are probably the best bet. What I would do if I were you is identify the magazines and writers I'd like to track. Many will have mailing lists that will notify members of upcoming publications, others might have regularly updated sites with RSS feeds that you might subscribe to (here's how). In this way, you should be able to impose a little order on the helter skelter world of short stories to learn about new stories via email and RSS.Anybody else have ideas?

Patric (who's got a pretty cool website) wrote in with this question, which tested my research skills.What was Entertainment Weekly's #1 Fiction Title for 2003?Before I set to figuring this one out, I guessed what it might be just to see if I would be right. Knowing Entertainment Weekly's tastes, I figured that Mark Haddon'sThe Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time was a pretty good candidate, but, no it turns out to be EW's number two book. The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger seemed like a good pick because, while a book club favorite, it broke new ground, Jonathan Lethem'sThe Fortress of Solitude for its genre-bending hipness, and maybe Monica Ali'sBrick Lane for its multicultural bent. But: no, no, and no. It turns out that the EW editors decided that 2003's best novel was Samaritan by Richard Price. It's actually a pretty good choice; Samaritan was well-reviewed, and sold well, but was not considered one of the "hot" books of the year. In the book, Price (who also wrote Clockers) weaves a mystery of sorts about a man who returns to his roots in a hard-edged New Jersey town and is brutally assaulted, but refuses to implicate his attacker. It's a bold and interesting pick by EW for best book of the year. (My pick, by the way, is The Known World by Edward P. Jones, hands down.)

Hey folks, another question, which made me recall one of my favorite books. Maybe I should reread this one some time soon. Here ya go:Salvatore Nicholas Mastropaolo writes:What is the "story Line" of Herman Hesse'sSiddhartha? I THANK YOU-Well, I thank you for writing in Sal. Herman Hesse wrote Siddhartha in 1922, and it was not considered one of his best books at the time. Hesse went on to win the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1946, and then sometime after World War II, coinciding perhaps with the rise in popularity of Beat literature, people began to appreciate Siddhartha's message of self-discovery. By the 1970s Siddhartha had been fully resurrected from obscurity has since been considered an essential as both a book about mysticism and a coming of age story. Though Siddhartha was originally taught in schools as a fictional window into Eastern religions and philosophies, it is now used as an example of the Western view of those traditions. Aside from all that though, it is a terrific little book about a spiritual journey. The story line? How about this: "A young Indian mystic, a contemporary of Buddha, sacrifices everything to search for the true meaning of life." But don't take my word for it! It's a fantastic book and a quick and unchallenging read that's worth far more than the time it takes to read it. Most folks out there have read Siddhartha. Any thoughts? Use the comment button below.

Michael wrote in with this question:For some reason (an end of summer shortening of attention span, perhaps) I'm in the mood for poetry, so I was wondering if, in the interest of discussing that other form of literature, the crew at The Millions could suggest some favorite poems, poets or poetry collections (the latter would be especially helpful, its the easiest way to carry around a dozen great mind in your pocket). Anyway, thanks for any suggestions.A trio of Millions contibutors chimed in on this one:Andrew: Full disclosure: my experience with poetry has been minimal, and for the most part it is my obsession with song and music that has led me to certain poets. In this context, then, I have been stirred most by the poetic voice of Leonard Cohen. The very fact that I know his voice intimately from his songs means that I hear his poems, too, spoken in my ear in that same voice. And while he's often labeled as a darkly intense romantic, in fact some of his finest poems have a light, playful quality. The one that first caught my attention is a little thing called "I Wonder How Many People In This City", from The Spice-Box of Earth, his second collection of poems from 1961. Here it is in its entirety:I wonder how many people in this citylive in furnished rooms.Late at night when I look out at the buildingsI swear I see a face in every windowlooking back at meand when I turn awayI wonder how many go back to their desksand write this down.All his collections are great, and his first one Let Us Compare Mythologies, from 1956, has recently been reissued. Additionally, many of his poems (including the one cited) and song lyrics can be found within the pages of the massive Stranger Music.Garth: Inspired by Craig Finn of the Hold Steady, I've been working my way through John Berryman'sDream Songs this year. Even for someone like me, who enjoys the fragmentary and fractal poetry of, say, John Ashbery, the Dream Songs were an adjustment, in that point-of-view and syntax are ever-shifting. For the first ten poems, I found myself searching for a way in. But this seems to be one of those great books that teaches you how to read it; I latched on to the rhythm, started reading the poems aloud to myself, and was off and running. One of the pleasures of reading this book is that so many of my friends turn out to have read it, and everyone has different favorites. Dream Songs Week at The Millions, anyone?Emily: If you don't have a preexisting taste for a particular kind of poetry and you like browsing, there's really nothing like The Norton Anthology of Poetry - then you've got everything from Beowulf to Billy Collins (our former poet laureate, whom I loathe, but many people seem to like) in chronological order, along with brief bios of all the poets, and a bit of a reader's guide on versification (rhyme, meter, forms) and poetic syntax. But it's not cheap and with 1828 poems by 334 poets, it's not a pocket book either.For price and selection - oh, most beloved of American publishers! - you cannot beat Dover paperbacks for poetry collections (where, right now, you can also get Obama and McCain paperdolls). All of their books are between a dollar and $10 and they have both single author collections (Yeats, Rochester - one of my favorites - a dirty, disillusioned Restoration poet, Browning, most wonderful Keats, Blake, Christina Rosetti, Tennyson, Sandburg), and multi-author collections. Favorite American Poems and 101 Best Loved Poems both looked good, but they have historical collections as well, like English Romantic Poetry, if you want to be more methodical in your reading.I also highly recommend the Academy of American Poets. They have an extensive online collection of poetry by American and English poets - more poets than the Norton - and they also have recordings of many of the poets reading their work. I highly recommend listening to Gwendolyn Brooks reading "We Real Cool" or Langston Hughes reading "The Negro Speaks of Rivers." It's a very user-friendly site and in addition to better biographical sketches than the Norton, they have an index of occasional poems for those so inclined (wedding, funeral, etc).As for individual favorite poems: I love Christopher Smart's crazy "Jubilate Agno" - it's a long poem, but a small portion of it gets anthologized and excerpted a lot as "For I will consider my Cat Jeoffry" or just "My Cat Jeoffry." I also love Ogden Nash's "A Portrait of the Artist as a Prematurely Old Man" (also, if you can find the recording of this, it's delightful). Robert Herrick's short poems: "The Night Piece, to Julia," "Upon Julia's Clothes," "Upon Prue, His Maid," "Delight in Disorder," and also his pastoral poems like "The Hock Cart" and "Corinna's Going A-Maying." Milton is great but he's a workout - his syntax can be a bit like taking part in WWF Smackdown for some readers. And Marvell's "The Garden," his "Mower" poems, and "Bermudas." Others to try: Gerrard Manly Hopkins, Christina Rosetti's "Goblin Market," Dorothy Parker's "Resume," Robert Graves, W.H. Auden, Dylan Thomas, Ted Hughes' "The Thought Fox" ...There are so many more, but I think I've probably already said too much.As a final note: I recommend you begin by reading William Carlos Williams' "This is just to say" and then read Kenneth Koch's "Variations on a theme by William Carlos Williams."

Christian writes in with this question:What is currently known about the next volume(s) of Robert Caro's magnificent biography of LBJ?The presidential biography is a major sub-genre of American literature, and it seems to be the constitutional right of every president to enter the annals of history by receiving the biographical treatment. The second half of the twentieth century is crowded with notable presidents, all of whom have garnered copious ink of varying quality and espousing a wide spectrum of opinions. Amidst the glut of Kennedy books and quality biographies of Truman, Reagan, and others, Robert Caro's biography of Lyndon B. Johnson stands out both for its size and its quality. I remember hearing somewhere that the biography was originally intended to be a smaller, one volume affair, but that Caro found LBJ so compelling he just couldn't stop, and the project ballooned its current astronomical page count, 2719 with one more volume on the way. Now, this isn't a case of quantity over quality; Volumes One and Two won the National Book Critics Circle Award, and Volume Three won the National Book Award and the Pulitzer. Not too shabby. So, when can we expect volume four, the capstone of Caro's stupendous achievement? Well, the short answer is that they don't have a date yet, but we can at least hazard a guess. The first book, The Path to Power came out in 1982; the second, Means of Ascent, in 1990, and the third, Master of the Senate, in 2002. So, after doing some back of the envelope calculations, I would expect to see the fourth and final volume (tentatively titled The Presidency) some time between 2010 and 2014. Chances are it'll be worth the wait. Thanks for the question Christian!

Renee writes in with this question:There is a relatively new book (fiction) that has been compared with The Group by Mary McCarthy. What is it? I have done an exhaustive search and cannot find it.The Group, published in 1962, is described by some as McCarthy's biggest success. "The group" is eight graduates of Vassar, then an all-women college. McCarthy explores the different paths their lives take and offers a satire of stuffy east coast, Ivy League society. Though the book's characters are graduates of the class of 1933, the book is more a relic of 1962, as McCarthy was not shy about the sex lives of her characters, presaging the loosening of social mores that was to come later that decade. Though not all that well-known now, the book is still highly regarded, which is no doubt part of the reason why it inspired A Fortunate Age, a forthcoming debut by Joanna Smith Rakoff. From Booklist:Like the classic novel it so obviously pays homage to, Mary McCarthy'sThe Group, Rakoff's mesmerizing debut opens with a wedding and closes with a funeral. In between, the novel provides a pitch-perfect portrait of the generation that came of age in the 1990s as four ambitious Oberlin graduates arrive in New York City full of hopes and dreams.A Fortunate Age will be published in April 2009.